The Aviator: Fossett flies into record books with solo, non-stop flight

MILLIONAIRE adventurer Steve Fossett returned to earth yesterday after becoming the first person to fly solo, non-stop around the world.

He touched down in Salina, Kansas, at 7.48pm Irish time.

His aircraft, Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer, looked in perfect condition after taking almost 67 hours to circumnavigate the globe.

There were whoops of delight from the 10,000 people lining the runway when Mr Fossett came into view.

He landed in bright sunshine, the blue skies proving a sharp contrast to his cold departure on Monday evening.

“That was something I have wanted to do for a long time, it was a major ambition. I am a really lucky guy now I got to achieve my ambition,” Mr Fossett said.

“Right now I don’t feel sleepy, but that was a really long day, to fly around the world.”

The adventurer told how he experienced four nights over the three-day trip because he was continually flying east.

But he added: “I was always in control and able to make rational decisions, I didn’t make any major errors.”